Indian ‘dosa king’ restaurant tycoon P. Rajagopal begins life sentence over murder of love rival

The 71-year-old rose from rags to riches to create the Saravana Bhawan restaurant chain, which has branches in Singapore, London and Sydney

He has gone to prison over the killing of the husband of a woman he wanted to make his third wife, reportedly on the advice of his astrologer

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P. Rajagopal, the founder of the Saravana Bhavan chain of restaurants, is seen sat in front of his two sons in 2010. Photo: Kamalakannan, CC by SA 3.0

Published: 7:50pm, 9 Jul 2019Updated: 8:47pm, 9 Jul 2019

The trailblazing Indian founder of a global restaurant chain surrendered to a court on Tuesday after losing a last-ditch bid to avoid a life sentence for murdering a love rival.

P. Rajagopal rose from rags to riches to create the Saravana Bhawan chain which has more than 80 eateries in India and around the world, from Leicester Square to Lexington Avenue via Singapore, Sydney and Stockholm.

He had been battling for 15 years to avoid prison since being convicted over the killing of the husband of a woman he wanted to make his third wife, reportedly on the advice of his astrologer.

The 71-year-old, dubbed the “dosa king” after the famous South Indian food staple, was meant to have reported to prison on Sunday but made a final plea on medical grounds.

The Supreme Court in New Delhi turned him down on Tuesday and the judges ordered the tycoon to “surrender immediately”.

Rajagopal was known as the “dosa king” after the famous South Indian food staple. Photo: Franke Tsang

He later gave himself up at the Madras High Court in Chennai in his native southern state of Tamil Nadu, arriving in an ambulance with an oxygen mask strapped to his face.